Braydon Court rejuvenation nearing completion

The first phase of a £5million regeneration project in Penhill, Swindon, has been unveiled.

Swindon Borough Council and Westlea Housing, part of the GreenSquare housing group, are working in partnership on the scheme, which will see three new retail units and 38 affordable homes built on the site.

Work to transform the Braydon Court shops and the surrounding residential area is well under way.

A number of the new homes will be ready for occupation in the coming weeks, with the entire project expected to be completed by next summer. The housing will be a mixture of 31 properties for rent, which will be advertised on the Council’s Choice Based Lettings system, and seven homes for ‘part rent, part buy’, or shared ownership.

Vic O’Brien, Group Development Director for GreenSquare, said: “This project has been some years in the making so we’re all excited that it’s now well under way.

“From the outset, Westlea Housing has worked alongside Swindon Borough Council – and directly with local residents – to shape and deliver a project that is about more than just new shops and homes.

“The regeneration work at Braydon Court and the surrounding area is about breathing new life into the neighbourhood, and we’re proud to be part of that process.”

Cllr David Renard, Swindon’s Cabinet Member for Health, Housing, and Adult Social Care, said: “I am delighted to see these works progressing and I am really pleased to see the scheme coming together and being completed, even in these difficult times.

“This shows our commitment to improving facilities for local people in our communities and I look forward in anticipation for the completion of the whole site in the summer of 2010.

“The completion of these first units is an important milestone for the scheme and the local community.”